With the introduction of iCloud -- Apple's service for storing your data and content online rather than on your devices -- you can now sync all of your stuff wirelessly between your Mac, iPhone, and iPad. This is great for adding things like appointments into your calendar as they will instantly appear on all of the Apple gizmos you're using.

If you haven't set up iCloud on your devices, it's easy to do, but you have to ensure you're using the same Apple ID on all your gadgets. By default, my iPhone was set to the account I use for the App Store, which is different from my iCloud account.

To enable iCloud in Mountain Lion, the latest edition of Apple's Mac OS X, go to System Preferences and log in with the Apple ID you want to use. I choose to enable all of the services here, such as Find My Mac and Photo Stream, but you can just check the ones that you'll use if you prefer (see image below).

Screenshot by CNET UK

Finally, to make sure everything syncs with your iOS device, you'll have to enable the same options. To do this, go to Settings > iCloud on your iPhone or iPad and check that your account is the same as the one on your Mac and that the same services have been enabled.

Screenshot by CNET UK

On iOS 6, you can sync data from apps such as Mail and Calendar, but all of your open tabs will sync over to the new Safari as well if you're using Mountain Lion. This is a really useful feature if you're browsing at home and have to rush out, but want to continue what you were doing online.

About the author

John Thompson has been addicted to technology ever since he tinkered with his custom built PC when he was 10 years old. He has been the proud owner of seven Amazon Kindles, but only because he accidentally destroyed the first six. John is a freelance journalist and is not an employee of CNET.
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